Washing-machine



W. M. GOVENTRY.

WASHING MACHINE. Y

Patened Mar.. 21A, 1893.

(No Model.)

Wiigessas Unire@ Sterns nrnivr erica.

VVlLLlAM M. COVENTRY, OF LONGTON, KANSAS.

WASHING-MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 493,820, dated March21, 1893.

l Application iiled October 22, 1892. Serial No. 449,652. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM M. CovENTRY, a citizen of the United States,residing at Longton, in the county of Elk and State of Kansas, haveinvented a new and useful Washing-Machine, of which the followingisaspecitication.

My invention relates to improvements in washing machines, of the classknown as rotary rubbers, and my improvement refers particularly to theconstruction and relative arrangement of the rubbing surfaces, and meansfor maintaining them in their proper relative positions.

My invention relates, furthermore, to certain details of construction,in the manner of mounting, &c., which will be fully describedhereinafter in connection with the drawings, the novel features of thedevice being particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings, Figure l is a perspective view of a washing machineembodying my improvements. Fig. 2 is a central vertical section of thesame.

A represents a tub or vessel, provided with a hinged lid, B, andsupporting legs, C C, which are tapered or wedge-shaped at their upperends to it, removably, in metallic stirrups or straps, D, which areriveted to the lowermost hoop, E, of the tub or vessel.

Of the opposing rubbers, F and Gr, which form the most important featureof my invention, F is stationary or fixed and forms the bottom of thetub or vessel, and G is movable and rotary and is fixed, centrally, tothe lower end of a vertical operating shaft, l-I, which is journaled inbearings in the lid of the tub or vessel. The opposing faces of therubbers are oppositely convexed,that is, the upper face of the fixedrubber and the lower face of the movable rubber are convexed. The facesof the rubbers are provided, furthermore, with radially-disposed ribs orcorrugations, which converge toward and meet at the apex of each rubbingface. Furthermore the sides of the tub or vessel are provided withvertically-disposed ribs or corrugations. All of the ribs orcorrugations are preferably triangular in cross-section, as shown, andthe outer ends of the radial ribs or corrugations and the upper andlower ends of the vertical ribs or corrugations 5o are chamfered toavoid corners and angles in which dirt would accumulate.

Fixed to the upper surface of the hinged lid are the parallel braces orcleats, I I, which extend from the free edge of the lid to its hingededge, or across the grain of the wood of 'which the lid is made, andconnecting said braces is a bar, K, parallel with the surface of the lidand provided with a bearing, L, in alignment with the bearing, M,in thelid, the 6o operating shaft of the movable rubber being mounted in thesealigned bearings, as shown. These separated and aligned bearings for theoperatin g shaft render the latter steady, preventing vibration andcramping during o peration, and the braces perform the further functionof preventing the lid from warping and splitting. Furthermore, the rearends of these braces are beveled whereby when the lid is thrown back, asshown in dotted lines 7c in Fig. 2, the latter is supported by thepressure of such beveled ends upon the upper surface of the stationaryportion, b, of the lid. Thus, these braces or cleats perform a triplefunction.

It is well known to those familiar with the art to which my inventionappertains, that there is a tendency in rotary-rubber washing machinesto draw the clothes from the sides toward the center of the tub orvessel. This 8o is caused by the fact that the center of the rubber isat rest and therefore the clothes at this point do not rotate, while therapidly moving periphery of the rubber causes the clothes near the sidesof the tub or vessel to 8 5 rotate around those at the center andfinally become twisted around them. To avoid this it is necessary toprovide a construction whereby the tendency will be to throw the clothesoutward or toward the sides of the tub or ves- 9o sel, and I accomplishthis by providing the rubbers with opposing convex faces, ashereinbefore fully described.

This construction produces a centrifugal movement in the tub or vessel,which throws the clothes from the center or slowly moving portion of therubber, toward the periphery or rapidly moving portion of the same,where they are forced more rapidly through the Water, are kept moreevenly distributed and separated, and are brought into contact with theribbed or corrugated sides of the tub or vessel.

5 Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secureby Letters Patent of the United States, is-

In a Washing machine, the centrally aligned rubbers having opposingconvex ribbed faces,

1o one of said rubbers being rotatably mounted,

and means to operate the same, substantially as set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto afxed mysignature in I. T. HOLYFIELD, J. BOTTERFF.

